Monday, 28 January 2013

Kathleen Wynne spoke with infectious optimism about the chances of an openly gay politician like her leading Ontario. Then she won.

Ontario made history on Saturday by selecting Kathleen Wynne as premier after she delivered an inspiring defense of whether a gay woman is electable in Canada.

Wynne is the first woman to lead Ontario and the first openly gay person to lead any province in Canada. After three ballots, Wynne won by a vote of 1,150 to 866, according to the Globe and Mail.

Wynne's speech before the 2013 Ontario Liberal leadership convention in Toronto addressed the notion that an openly gay person could not win her party's leadership post. She did it by addressing concerns that, if a general election is triggered by the opposition, an openly gay premier would be a losing proposition for voters.

"I want to put something on the table," she said during a speech Saturday while seeking the leadership post. "Is Ontario ready for a gay premier? You've heard that question. You've all heard that question. But let's say what it actually means: can a gay woman win? That's what it means. Not surprisingly, I have an answer to that question. When I ran in 2003, I was told that the people of North Toronto and the people of Thorncliffe Park weren't ready for a gay woman. Well apparently they were."